Reformed
by Panhead17
Summary: Cobra busts out of prison in hopes of learning more about the mysterious girl he met who had Cubelios's thoughts. After joining the Crime Sociére and finally meeting the girl he's looking for, can Cobra find a way to tell Kinana how he feels? Or will the council get in his way once again? Officially off haiatus, woohoo!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note- Here is my little teaser/prologue thing for my next upcoming story! I (unfortunately) won't be able to actually start the real story, due to a variety of situations beyond my control (exams… grrr…) but I hope this tides you over. Check out my other stories if you are also a fan of Bixanna (Bixlow x Lisanna) or Mystwalker (Mystogan x Erza Knightwalker). Now enjoy my teaser!**

**Chapter 1- Prologue**

Cobra sat in his cell, pondering life. There wasn't a whole lot else he could do in the tiny stone room anyway, and the lack of sound was actually a bit of a relief for him. His hearing magic made even the smallest amount of human interaction a bit obnoxious, and the magic-nullification runes spread about the room were a bit of a welcome breather from that.

Then again, he decided, it was still jail. And magic-nullification runes also meant no poison magic, which meant almost no chance of escape. Cobra had to admit, as annoying as the magic council could be, they knew how to build a pretty damn escape proof magic prison.

That hadn't quelled his spirit to escape, however, and he spent most of his free time (which was pretty much _all_ of his time) trying to figure ways out of the jailhouse. He had things he needed and wanted to do with his life, and one of the most pressing in his mind was finding out more about that girl with Cubellios's voice. But that couldn't happen if he couldn't find a way out.

"Hey, snake-freak. Get up, it's time for yer walk."

Cobra groaned inwardly. The time outside was supposed to be a reward or blessing, but all it meant for Cobra was spending twenty minutes in the council's sorry excuse for a backyard with no one but an impatient guard.. He rose slowly and held out his hands as the guard slapped a set of heavy iron chains on his wrists.

The guard pulled out several pieces of paper and scrawled a magic nullification rune on each before sticking one is his pocket, another on Cobra's back and the third wrapped around the chains on his hands. The duo then set off into the yard.

"Yard" was a bit of a strong word really. It was a rather small plot, maybe thirty by thirty feet surrounded by a 6 foot stone wall. A small, dilapidated wooden gardening shed sat in the corner of the yard, and Cobra knew from experience that it was home to a family of snakes and countless bats.

Conra saw one of the aforementioned snakes suddenly dart out of the shed and was struck by an idea—a risky one, but at this point, what choice did he have? Cobra glanced towards the guard again, and seeing him inattentive, set his plan in motion.

He spun around, using the heavy chains as a club to hit the guard as hard as he could. A smirk flickered across Cobra's face as he watched the nullification runes flicker out, their caster rendered unconscious. Turning again, Cobra lunged and grabbed the wandering snake.

_A rattler. Good, it's venomous. Spirits, I hope this works._ He forced the snake's mouth open and jabbed the fangs into his arm, hoping against hope that the poison would have the same effect if it was ingested this way.

A sudden rush of magical energy, along with the sudden reappearance of the little voices in his head proved his ploy had worked. Taking one more look at the unconscious guard, Cobra clambered over the wall and stumbled into the surrounding forest.

Three days had passed, and Cobra was getting a bit desperate. He still had been unable to find a way to remove the thick iron cuffs, and he had been unable to find much to eat because of that. If he didn't find some food and shelter _fast_, things were going to get ugly.

He found a nice clearing and actually ate some berries he found before settling under a large tree. Not comfortable, really, but he'd slept in worse places.

A sudden rustling in the brush surrounding him startled from his dozing state. A minute later, three cloaked figure stumbled into the clearing and immediately went on-guard when they noticed the Dragon Slayer.

"Hey, you! You the hell are you?" the shortest figure called out in a feminine voice.

Cobra winced at her piercing voice. "No need to shout… you can call me Cobra."

The tallest figure started suddenly and Cobra figured he had been recognized. The figure pulled his hood down to reveal messy blue hair and a strange red facial tattoo.

"Don't worry, we aren't going to hurt you. You can call me Jellal. This is Meredy and Ultear, and we are… the Crime Sociére.

**In case you couldn't tell, in this story Cobra joins the Crime Sociére! This is legit something that I want to see so badly in the anime/manga, and I guess that's kinda leaking into my writing… anyhoo, keep an eye out for, y'know, the actual story here, it should be up within a few weeks. Check out my other stories too, plz!**


	2. Arrival

**Author's Note- Surprise! I managed to get off work early, so here I am writing for you! Vilandel! I feel like I would absolutely adore your writing, **_**if**_** it was in English. Like legit, I'm fairly sure you've supplied about two thirds of the Kinabra stories on this site, and **_**I can't read any of them I'm so sad**_**. And DMGSilverAirHead03, there you are! I was wondering when you were going to show up again. So now, here we go!**

**Chapter 2- Arrival**

Kinana wandered about behind the bar, serving the guild's patrons and conversing with the Strauss sisters. As the only non-magic user in the guild, Kinana had felt a bit out of place when she had first arrived, but everyone seemed to enjoy her company and she had grown to love the unique atmosphere.

Right now, Mira's train of conversation was focused on, what else, matchmaking. She was currently locked in a rather interesting conversation with Lucy about her love life.

"So, you gotten anything from Natsu yet?"

"Shut up Mira! Our relationship isn't like that!"

"Right, you only wish it was."

"Yes! I mean no! Just shut up Mira!"

"She liiiiiiiiikkkes him." Happy cooed as he flew past before being snatched out of the air by a rather pissed off Lucy.

"Shut the hell up you damn cat!"

Kinana giggled slightly with Lisanna at their shenanigans and went back to her end of the bar.

"So, Lisanna, I thought you liked Natsu."

Lisanna blushed slightly. "That was a long time ago. I'm all for Lucy on this one. Besides, I think I've found someone of my own." she replied, glancing over at the Raijinshuu's table. Kinana remembered the events from a few months previously and giggled slightly. Lisanna had certainly seemed to have found someone who complemented her quite well in Bixlow.

Mira had moved away from Lucy and was now poking fun at Levy while Lucy continued to beat Happy. Kinana sighed happily as she watched her rather eccentric guild mates mess around. She hoped Mirajane would leave her out of the matchmaking tirade, but speak of the devil (**HA!**) here she came.

"So, Kinana, is there anyone _you_ have your eyes on?" Mira purred with a slightly sadistic smile.

"Not really…" she replied, as she thought about it. Her face must have given something away, because Mira took a sudden interest and kept the conversation going.

"Ahh, so there _is_ someone! Do tell!"

As much as she was embarrassed to admit it, Kinana might have had a tiny little maybe-crush on a very particular Dragon Slayer. Cobra, the guild called him, but when she had asked his name, he had told her it was Erik. She had no idea why she felt connected to that man, but something about him was extremely familiar.

But she couldn't exactly tell Mira that. Last she checked, Cobra was still in jail, and was bound to stay there for a _very_ long time. So instead of answering, she simply shrugged Mirajane off and rushed to serve Wakaba yet another beer. She should probably have cut him off by that point, but she had to do _something_ to get away from Mira.

"Avoid the question now, but I will find out!" Mira called after her in a voice that was equal parts sweet and terrifying. Pretty much the barmaid's whole personality, really.

Everyone's train of thought was suddenly interrupted when the guild doors swung open, revealing four cloaked figures who quickly shuffled inside before swinging the doors shut behind them. Once they were fully concealed from the public eye, three of the four pulled off their hoods, revealing a set of infrequent, but definitely not unwelcome visitors.

"Jellal, you've finally returned!" Mira greeted him and his motley group. "Should I alert Erza to your presence."

"Uhhh, gimme just a couple minutes on that. Just tell me one thing first."

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Is Natsu in the building?"

"Not at the moment… why do you ask?" Mira asked, slightly confused.

"Well, we have a new member, and he's not always the most… open, if you know what I mean. Cobra, I think it's safe."

The last hooded figure pulled off his cloak and dropped onto a barstool. Kinana was shocked to see Cobra (Erik, really, she reminded herself), and didn't approach right away.

Mira nodded in understanding. "I see. I'll fetch the Master." she said before walking off. "Oh, and Erza of course." she called as she left the room.

Jellal nodded a thank you and took Meredy and Ultear over to a corner table. Cobra, however, stayed at the bar, clearly uncomfortable with the noise level in the packed hall. Kinana overcame her shock and approach slowly.

"E- Erik? Is that really you?" she whispered, aware of how loud it must seem to him. The man's head snapped to face her and a strange look passed on his face.

"Cubellios…" he whispered, slightly confused. This was most definitely the girl he had been looking for. Her thoughts sounded exactly the same as Cubellios's had, albeit with a slightly different focus- in this case, him.

"Well, actually my name's Kinana…" she replied shyly.

"No, that's not it… you remind me of my snake, Cubellios. But I lost her after the Nirvana incident…"

"Remind you of her how?"

"Well, I can hear your thoughts, right? And you two have the same voice in my head. Exactly the same."

"Before the Master changed me back, I _was_ a snake. Maybe… maybe I _was_ Cubellios."

Cobra was surprised by this information, but it made sense. In all his years, he had yet to discover two beings with the same mental 'voice,' so to speak, and this girl was a dead ringer for Cubellios's.

"Changed back… how'd you get turned into a snake in the first place?"

"A dark mage when I was just a little girl. I don't really remember anything about that time but I have to admit… you seem very familiar to me too."

With that, Cobra was certain. This girl, as improbable as it seemed, had once been his beloved companion, and now worked in the guild that had defeated him and his old guild mates. He stood up and grabbed Kinana's shoulders, a grin appearing on his face for the first time.

"I finally found you Cubellios. I said I would, and I did. Never expected you to actually be a human though…"

Kinana giggled slightly at this and grinned as Cobra walked over to join the Crime Sociére at their table. Her strange feelings about the man seemed much less strange now that she knew what she did about her past. And if Cobra was really joining the Crime Sociére, she'd be seeing a lot more of him…

Mira, peering around the corner, had witnessed this whole exchange and now stood with a rather terrifying smile on her face. Lisanna walked over to see what she was thinking.

"Do I want to know what you're pondering right now?" the younger Strauss asked.

"Oh, I think I just found Kinana's little crush." Mira replied, her smile growing wider. "This ought to be fun."

**God Mira, do you really need to make it your business to matchmake everybody? …Scratch that, yes, yes she does. So anyway, I started reading Fairy Tail Zero, and IT IS AMAZING EVERYONE SHOULD GO READ IT NOW. I'm not even joking, it's great. So yeah, next chapter'll probably be a little while, sorry. But enjoy this for now! And Vilandel, if you wrote even one Kinabra fic in English for me, I would, like, love you forever. I don't even care if it's not good English, I just want to read your stuff cuz something tells me its great. **


	3. Reward for Compliance

**Author's Note- So yeah, I have no idea where this chapter's going… well, let's just write it and find out. Also ***MAJOR MANGA SPOLIERS*** BUT OH MY GOD THE NEWEST CHAPTER MY DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE THANK YOU MASHIMA-SENSEI WHOOOHOO ORACION SEIS IS BACK BABY! IT'S ALMOST LIKE MY STORY MADE IT COME TRUE! Ok, Ok, I'm calm now… probably. Anyway, here ya go.**

**Chapter 3- Reward for Compliance**

Cobra sat with his new teammates- well Meredy specifically, as Jellal was off talking to Erza and Ultear was off… somewhere—at a table along the back wall. He was intrigued by the whole guild in general, and Cubellios (sorry, Kinana now) especially. He was thinking about how he should proceed—he _had _agreed to help Jellal hunt down dark guilds—when the white-haired barmaid approached their table.

"Hey Cobra, nice to meet you. My name's Mirajane, by the way. Would you mind coming with me for a minute?"

Cobra shrugged and followed the woman upstairs. They turned into a rather spacious office, where Cobra saw the smallest man he had ever seen sitting behind the world's most comically oversized desk.

"Ahh, Cobra. I heard of your, ahh… escape from the council."

Cobra tensed, if only involuntarily and backed away slightly. The short man laughed loudly and walked around in front of the desk.

"No worries, child, I have no love for the council myself. Jellal and Meredy are on the run too, and we shelter them all the time. All I ask is that you respect our rules while you're here, and if you so much as _think_ about hurting our family…" the man's eyes glowed and he grew to about seven feet in height. "I will end you myself." he growled.

Sufficiently terrified, Cobra stood and swept out of the office as quickly as possible. Mirajane intercepted him on the staircase, however.

"That was Makarov, our master. Don't get too scared by him, he won't do anything if you stay in line." she stood aside to let Cobra return to the hall, where he immediately returned to his table.

"Ooohh, someone get lucky with Fairy's demon?"

"Dammnit Meredy, you may be the most perverted person I know, and I've only known you for a few days. She just introduced me to the old man and told me not to mess around."

"Ohh, so they gave you the riot act? I remember when they did that to Jellal. He got so shook up we couldn't come back here for a couple days, even though we were still in town. And that really means something, since that meant two days without seeing his precious Erza."

Cobra snorted at that one. Thanks to his mind-reading type abalities, Jellal's feeling for the red-haired wrrior weren't exactly lost on him. "Hmm. Pansy. Say, what do you know about that chick Kinana?"

"Why, you interested? She's still single, I think…"

"Not that type of stuff Meredy. I- we, really—just discovered that, as it turns out, she was my pet snake while I was in Oracion Seis. Turns out she was turned into a snake as a kid."

"Oh." Meredy sounded almost disappointed. "Well, we don't come here often, so I can't say much. Honestly, I'd talk to Mira or Lisanna about that, they work with her every day, so they'd probably know the most."

"Thanks." Cobra replied. He reached out and hesitantly patted Meredy's head, much to the girl's chagrin. "I'll do that."

Cobra decided to wait a day on that (No, not because he was afraid of Makarov… okay, maybe just a little…) and left the guild to return to the Sociére's campsite just outside of town.

Honestly, he had liked joining up with Jellal and his group. It was much quieter out here in the country, and they had the same mission of redemption that he hoped to achieve. Meredy had quickly began treating him like an older brother, and Jellal and Ultear, while less into the whole "family" thing, had responded rather positively to his new presence.

He sat thinking for another few minutes, when a sudden noise deep in the forest disturbed him. He thought about hiding the campsite, but after another minute the person came into his mental range and he quickly determined who it was.

Kinana walked and the clearing and seemed startled at Cobra's presence. "Oh! Erik! I didn't know you were here. Mira just asked me to deliver this, apparently Jellal wanted it back here…"

Cobra groaned inwardly. He had picked up the barmaid's matchmaking thoughts when she brought him to see the Master, and had hoped she wouldn't do anything about it, but clearly today was just no his day with the she-demon.

"Jellal's tent is right over there." he replied aloud, pointing to the tent that he and the blue-haired mage now shared. "Just leave it on one of the sleeping bags, he'll see it."

Kinana obeyed and then turned to leave. "It's been… nice, seeing you Erik. I'll leave you alone now…"

Cobra made a rather spontaneous decision. "No, no that's alright, come here, sit down." he said, gesturing next to him on the log he had perched on. Kinana hesitated for a moment but then approached and sat down.

"I was wondering… how exactly do you know my name?" Cobra asked, curious.

"You don't remember? During that whole Infinity Clock thing, when you fell, I went to go help you. I asked your name, and you said Erik."

"Hmm. I distinctly do not remember that. I remember Titania kicking my ass, falling and the next thing I know, there's this pretty girl helping me and then I'm in jail." Cobra replied.

Kinana blushed at his recounting, and leaned a little closer. "So, how exactly did you break out of prison? Everyone's been wondering."

"A Dragon Slayer never reveals his secrets." he whispered mysteriously, before chuckling. "I'm kidding. It was pretty easy, actually. Whack the guard upside the head and get one of the numerous snakes in the area to bite me to get my powers back. Kinda scary though, I've never ingested poison like that before. Wasn't sure it would work."

"Well, I'm glad it did." Kinana replied. She stood and brushed off her dress before turning to leave. "I should really get going. Promise me you'll come back to the guild before you guys leave? I know it's noisy, but…"

Cobra smiled slightly. "Yeah, I'll come back. Meredy'd probably kill me if I didn't anyway."

Kinana laughed—a beautiful sound, Cobra thought, not glaringly loud to his sensitive hearing, but still full and joyous—and started walking back. "Oh yeah, and don't let Natsu smell you before we have a chance to explain. He likes to punch things first and ask questions later."

"I'll keep that in mind. Have a nice night Kinana."

"You too Cobra."

**Okay, nothing too spectacular, but I'm ok with it. Rate and review, as always, and if you haven't caught up in the Fairy Tail manga, you should totally read it, I'm fangirling so hard right now. And I'm a dude, so that should say something. Night y'all.**


	4. Damn it Mira!

**Author's Note- Whoa, two chapters in this short amount of time?! Unprecedented. Maybe I should stop writing and study for calculus… nah, I'll be fine…**

**Probably not, but KINABRA!**

**Chapter 4- Damn it, Mira!**

Cobra stayed in the campsite that night—he wasn't exactly surprised when Jellal didn't return with the others—but remembered his promise to Kinana to return. Meredy practically dragged him back to the guild hall the next morning, though he wasn't really complaining.

They reached the guild to find their leader sitting sheepishly in a corner with an equally embarrassed Erza. Cobra swiftly turned his mind away from their thoughts—he wasn't really sure he wanted to know what the two of them had spent the night doing.

Glancing around, Cobra was disappointed to see Kinana didn't seem to be present—more disappointed then he'd be willing to admit, even. It was times like these where he was glad _he_ was the mind reader… though Mira's intuition seemed to be on par with his own abilities sometimes.

Speak of the devil, (great, Jellal's lame puns were rubbing off on him) here came the barmaid. He groaned when he picked up her… rather romantic intentions.

"Hey, Cibra come here I have something for you."

Cobra hesitantly followed, aware he was probably in for a rather unpleasant surprise. His feelings were proven correct when Mira suddenly stopped and threw him bodily into a closet. Before he could respond, she slammed the door and dragged something in front of it, locking him in.

"Don't you think that was a little excessive Mira-nii?" Lisanna asked, slightly concerned for the Dragon Slayers well-being.

"Mehh, he can handle it. He'll thank me later anyway.

Cobra's eyes (eye, really) quicly adjusted to the darkness in the closet and he realized he wasn't alone.

"Kinana? Did Mira throw you in here too?"

"Not like you, no, but she told me to fetch some things and then locked me in here."

"Damn it. I was worried this would happen. She's intent on, uhhh… match making us, apparently."

Both of them blushed deeply, but couldn't see the other due to the darkness.

"So, uhh, what are we going to do?" Kinana asked, still slightly flustered and eager to get out of the small space.

"Lemme try something…" Cobra muttered before kicking the door open again. The door flew open and Cobra leapt out, only to run into an invisible wall right outside the door.

"What the hell…" he pondered aloud before a set of glowing words appeared on the wall.

"This wall cannot be passed until the occupants obey the Christmas tradition."

Cobra looked up and saw a bunch of mistletoe hanging from the ceiling.

"Damn it Mira, it's not even Christmas!"

"Oh shut up you, just listen to the magic wall."

"Freed, did she put you up to this?"

The green haired mage slinked away without answering, but Cobra could hear his guilt and groaned. He knew the man's reputation—his rune magic was damn near impenetrable.

The Dragon Slayer leaned against the wall while Kinana looked on. Cobra was preparing to start, well, wrecking shit to get Mira to let him out when Kinana leaned over and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Good enough for me!" Mira giggled happily and the invisible wall disappeared. Cobra stumbled out, flustered and annoyed. He quickly stomped out of the guild as Kinana stepped out meekly behind him.

Cobra returned to the campsite and sat down on the log again, frustrated and annoyed at Mira's antics. He had never felt this way about anyone before, and the barmaid's actions were only confusing him. He had loved Cubellios as his only true friend, and Kinana… well, he didn't really know how he felt.

"Damn it, why is this stuff so hard?"

His frustration cooled off and he was left feeling confused. He didn't really understand _what_ he was feeling, and that unknown scared him. He was snapped from his reverie by a sudden approaching figure. Not wanting to be seen in a vulnerable state, Cobra leapt into the lower branches of a nearby tree and clambered out of sight.

"Erik? Are you here?"

Cobra instantly felt a wave of guilt when he saw it was Kinana searching for him in the campsite. He discreetly dropped from the tree and slumped into a sitting position on the outskirts of the camp.

"There you are! Look, I'm really sorry about what happened…"

"Don't bother apologizing, it's not your fault. Mira's just being… excitable."

"Well, I'm sorry your first time at the guild is going the way it is. Mira's usually pretty sane, I don't know what's gotten into her."

_Oh, but I do Kinana, and Mavis help both of us because she won't stop until she gets what she wants_ Cobra thought, somewhat unhappily. He had formed an easy, open friendship with Kinana relatively quickly, and while he still was confused about how he truly felt, he didn't want the barmaid screwing up what they already had.

Kinana broke the breiif silence. "So, when are you guys planning on leaving?"

"Well, we were planning on leaving tonight, but if what I keep overhearing from Jellal is true, that probably won't happen. I'd give it two days until he and Erza stop dancing around each other and we actually get a move on."

Kinana laughed slightly at that; Jellal and Erza's relationship was kind of a talking point about the guild whenever the Crime Sociére showed up, and their antics and denial was rather entertaining.

"Do you know what you'll be doing when you leave?"

"Apparently there's some dark guild around the countryside we were going to check out; Hand of Sanguine or something like that. Should be interesting."

"Well, just be careful. I- I don't know what I'd do if… you know."

Cobra tentatively wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm pretty damn tough. I survived Natsu, I can survive these idiots."

Kinana laughed her beautiful laugh again, forcing Cobra's face into a wide smile. He started laughing as well, and it swelled to uncontrollable levels. The pair was relying on each other for support, unable to even stand correctly from the force of their laughter.

It was the first time Cobra had laughed and let loose like this in a long time. And it felt good. It was during this laughing fit that Cobra pieced together exactly what he felt. It was love. Pure, unaltered love, love for the person who could make him feel like this, love for his oldest friend, and (damn it, Mira was absolutely right), love for Kinana.

_Now if only I knew anything about this kind of stuff._

**Good job Cobra, you learned about feelings! Sorry if this seems rushed, buttttt… yeah, you know, the calculus stuff is still kinda important… anyway, hoped you liked this, next chapter should see a little bit of action! Fighting action, I guess I should clarify—gotta go fight those dark guilds and stuff, y'know. So yeah, new chapter may be up… later, I guess. Don't get your hopes up too much on that one.**


	5. Hand of Sanguine

**Author's Note- Finally done with exams! And I got a B- on my calc test! Seriously, this is exciting to me, remember I was writing the last chapter for you people instead of studying. So anyway, this time, it's gonna get angsty! So stop asking questions and read the chapter!**

**Chapter 5- Hand of Sanguine**

Almost exactly as predicted, two days later, Jellal finally stopped making excuses and the mages packed up their campsite and left for the countryside. They had heard rumors of a dark guild in a town outside of Magnolia and had decided to investigate.

They had no trouble finding the guild; all they had to do was ask the locals and they were pointed towards one of the seedier, out of the way bars. They were none to happy with the dark mages, and had started blaming them for some rather mysterious recent disappearances.

The four entered the bar, hoods up and heads low. They got a couple suspicious glances, but no more than they garnered in the public eye. They sat down and ordered a round of drinks, just to blend in.

A rather friendly old man delivered their mugs, and Cobra had to wonder if he knew he was sitting on top of a dark guild. He raised the mug to his lips and tasted something… different.

He immediately recognized the taste and spat out the beer. "Don't drink that!" he whispered harshly. "It's a mind control poison!"

The other three members immediately set their drinks back down and noticed the old man approaching them again, with a sinister glint in his eye.

"Very good, young man, you seem very perceptive to my poison. Too bad. Now we'll have to kill you."

Every bar patron instantly swiveled to face the group, and Cobra was suddenly struck by the realization that _all_ of them were mind controlled. This 'dark guild' wasn't a guild at all, just a bunch of mages manipulated by this man!

The Crime Sociére lept into action. Most of the mages fell easily before them (a lot of them weren't mages at all actually, just shepherds—probably the shepherds who had disappeared recently). Cobra attacked the old man, who seemed to use some sort of poison production magic.

_Good_ Cobra thought, _I can just eat this stuff._ The man threw poison after poison at him, but Cobra just lapped it up and felt his magic grow even stronger. The man eventually realized that his attacks were pointless and retreated behind the bar.

Jellal stood in the center of a group of unconscious men, and looked around for more. _Too easy_, he thought _these guys really need to step up their game._

The man stepped from behind the counter holding a glowing vial. "This is my strongest poison, mixed with the blood of a demon! Try eating this, you freak!"

He threw the vial full force at Cobra, and he knew it was going to end badly. That poison was stronger then he was able to handle, but if that vial hit the floor _everyone_ in the building was going to die.

He made his decision and threw himself into the bottle's path. It shattered against his chest and he quickly slurped up all the poison before it could hit anything else. It burned fiercely as he swallowed it, and he instantly felt weak and collapsed to his knees.

He felt Jellal and Meredy pick him up as the world began to fade and swirl. He felt them carry him from the building before everything went black.

Fairy Tail was experiencing its normal chaos when the doors suddenly flew open. Three familiar cloaked figures shuffled in, carrying a fourth between them. The quickly threw the unconscious member onto a table and yanked off their cloaks.

"Someone get Wendy! Or Porlyuscia! Somebody!" Jellal called out. Wendy was on a job; Pantherlily flew out the door alongside Jet to fetch the older woman.

"Hey, I know who that is! That's that snake asshole, what's he doing here?" Natsu yelled out, running towards the table. Erza stood and slapped him away. "Not the damn time, Natsu!"

Kinana ran over to the table upon hearing it was Cobra. He was still unconscious, and his face and skin were a sickly shade of gray. She turned to Jellal, trying to keep composed.

"Wh- what happened?" she asked meekly. "How did this…"

Jellal gave her a sad smile. "One of the mages made poison- strong stuff, Etherious, probably would have killed us all. But he caught it and ate it. Saved everyone. Don't worry about him too much Kinana, he's tough. That poison was strong, but he's stronger. He'll be okay."

Kinana was at least slightly reassured. She walked over and sat in the chair at the table with Cobra's body and waited. Pantherlily flew back in a few minutes later with a rather disgruntled Porlyuscia.

"Which one of you brats hurt yourself this time?" she growled, making her way over to the table. She took Cobra's pulse and felt his skin.

"Hmmph… poisoned. You know with what?"

"Something magical. Guy said it had demon blood, so probably Etherious." Jellal replied.

The healer grunted. "Demons. Hate 'em. Every part of them is dangerous and volatile- their blood especially. When did it happen?"

"About an hour ago. We got him here as quickly as possible."

"Good, that means we have some time." The woman pulled out several herbs from her nag and began grinding them to a paste. She forced it into Cobra's mouth and his eyes shot open. He tried to sit up but immediately fell back down to the table.

"Holy shit, that burns. And what the hell are you people feeding me, it tastes like—"

"Sut up, brat, it's medicine. And lay back down, you just ingested one of the most dangerous magical substances in the world, it's gonna sting a little. Now open up, I've got more medicine for you."

Cobra obediently opened his mouth and let Porlyuscia spoon feed him a different herbal paste. It tasted like manure and dead grass, but he choked it down, for Kinana's sake. If he died after having only just met her again, she'd kill him. Again.

The woman finished feeding him various toxic-tasting medicines and left to go replenish her stock of herbs. Kinana tentatively took Cobra's hand and moved a little closer.

"That was really brave of you, Erik. Really stupid, but really brave."

Cobra winced. "Yeah, I know. But the other option was letting everyone die, and I figured that'd be considered a little rude of me, since they rescued me and all."

Kinana and Cobra laughed a little at his joke, but Cobra stomach heaved with the sudden motion and he laid back down. He twisted to get comfortable and realized exactly where he was laying.

"Hey, Kinana, do you think you could get me somewhere else to lie down? This table is _really_ un-ergonomic."

**I'm so sorry for not dragging that out (not really). Literally, I love this pairing so much it's impossible for me to write anything too angsty for it. So I apologize if you wanted some real angst, cuz you ain't gonna get that here. But I felt the need to add **_**something **_**angsty, so her you are.**


	6. A Poisonous Problem

**Author's Note- I have returned after my unfortunately long wait (I know it was only a few days, but I like to keep things quick and steady)! So I don't know exactly what I want to write about, but I'll think of something… and yes Vilandel, while Natsu is not particularly important to the story here, he will be causing some problems for our favorite couple! Maybe that's what I'll write about, mumble mumble…**

**Chapter 6- A Poisonous Problem**

The next few days consisted of Cobra alternately being pampered by Kinana and having disgusting medicine force fed to him by Porlyusica. It was definitely the "every man for himself" philosophy he had spent his whole life following, but he could used to it. The pampering, that is- he wasn't sure he'd ever get used to that noxious taste.

Kinana told him that Erza had been stationed at the base of the stairs specifically to prevent Natsu from entering Cobra's upstairs room. He seemed very upset about Cobra's allowance into the guild, and Erza had knocked him unconscious at least four times as he attempted to get upstairs.

Cobra slowly regained his strength as the powerful poison slowly worked its way through his system. The burning sensation had traveled from his stomach up into his chest and had finally dulled before dropping back into his gut. The worst of it seemed to be over; Cobra could finally sit and stand up with pain, and the sudden blackouts he had suffered from had finally stopped.

And a good thing that was too, as on the third day of his hospitalization, Natsu finally made it past Erza by bribing her with cake. He burst into the room with both fists alight and raring for a fight.

Unfortunately, Mirajane was checking up on the Poison Dragon Slayer when this happened, and let's just say things did not end well. Cobra managed to rise from the bed before the demon Mira kicked Natsu straight through the back wall. Cobra promptly sat back down again and looked on with some interest.

Natsu returned to the room, looking somewhat mangled and still quite angry.

"Why is that poisonous bastard here!? He tried to fucking _kill_ us! Twice!"

"Now Natsu, Cobra has changed."

"Shut up Mira, that's what you said about Gajeel too!"

"And I was right, wasn't I?"

Natsu stopped his tirade for a moment when he realized Mira was right. Gajeel hadn't caused a single problem since he had joined (with the exception of a few fights, but those didn't really count as a problem in his mind), just as Mira had said.

"Well… I'll be watching you, bastard. Don't fuck anything up."

Cobra just rolled his eyes and slumped back onto the bed. Kinana handed him a bottle of water, which he quickly gulped down, still somewhat angry at Natsu- the quick temper was a fairly common trait amongst Dragon Slayers.

"Don't worry about him Cobra, he'll see that you've changed eventually. I mean, Gajeel apparently destroyed the whole guild hall and chained some members to a tree, but they accepted him."

"I'm actually more concerned about the Council. Gajeel was never a fugitive, if that flaming idiot had half a brain and _really_ wanted me gone, he'd just call the Magic Council and have 'em pick me up."

"Oh, don't say that. Natsu may… dislike you, but he's not that cruel. Or that smart, really."

They both giggled slightly and Cobra laid back down to sleep off the rest of the poison, confident in Mirajane's ability to beat the shit out of Natsu while he slept.

Cobra fell asleep rather quickly, the last of the poison working through his system leaving him exhausted. Kinana decided to stay for a while, watching the dragon slayer as he slept. She had to admit, when he wasn't busy scowling at everything, he was really quite handsome.

She blushed lightly just thinking about this, glancing around to make sure Mira had well and truly left. She already suspected some sort of attraction, and if she managed to confirm it… well, it wouldn't end well for any involved party.

Kinana curled up in her chair, content to just sit for the time being. She'd go back to her apartment eventually, but it was still early evening and she didn't have to work the next morning. She got comfortable, and before she knew it, had dropped off to sleep.

He must have slept longer then he thought he had, as when he awoke it seemed to be the middle of the night. Kinana had fallen asleep in the chair next to his bed, and Cobra felt slightly bad that she had been losing comfortable sleep to keep him company.

He didn't mind her company though. In fact, he was genuinely glad she had decided to stay by his side through his trial. She didn't have to stay here with him, and she probably hadn't meant too, but it was touching nonetheless.

Cobra stood and stretched. He felt quite refreshed, and he could tell the last of that blasted poison had finally dissipated. He checked the moon out the window and could tell from the moon that it was around 2 in the morning.

Cobra was surprised when Jellal suddenly burst into the room.

"Good, you're up. We need to go!"

"What? Why?"

"The council's sent a raiding party into the woods outside of town. Apparently one of those townspeople blabbed about what we did to that old dude."

"Damnnit! Alrighty, gimme one second and I'll meet you downstairs."

Jellal turned and bolted down the stairs as Cobra moved to retrieve that things left on the table next to his bed. He shook Kinana slightly to wake her.

"Huh? What- what's going on?" she asked blearily.

"The council found us, and we need to get out of town. I'm really sorry I couldn't have more time here, but we'll be back. I promise." Cobra leaned down and hesitantly kissed her cheek before spinning and running after Jellal.

Kinana was still very confused, and not quite sure if what had happened was a dream or not. She rose slowly and walked downstairs just in time to see the cloaked Crime Sociére yank open the front doors.

"I guess this is goodbye, Erik. Please keep your promise." she whispered, knowing Cobra would hear her. Sure enough, the man turned and flashed her a toothy smile before turning and running out the door with his comrades.

**Well, there you are. Not the greatest chapter I've ever written. Certainly not the worst. Hope you enjoy, and hope it lives up to your expectations. And now, since it is like 1 in the morning here, I must rest. Panhead out.**


	7. Hiatus Announcement (Of Sorts)

**Before I begin, I'd like to apologize.**

**I know there are a lot of you following this story, and a lot of you invested in its creation and it really hurts me to do this.**

**Any members of the RWBY fandom received some devastating news today. Monty Oum, creator and head animator of the series passed away today of a serious allergic reaction after a surgery. As a member of this fandom, I am simply astounded and very saddened by this. **

**To honor his memory, I have decided to begin writing a story for RWBY, specifically the JaunexPyrrha pairing that has been bouncing around in my head for a while. Unfortunately, I am really only capable of working on one story at a time (one track kinda mind, you see), and this one will be taking a backseat whilst I work on the other. This is only temporary, trust me, but until I have completed this new story to my satisfaction, this story will be on a temporary and hopefully brief hiatus.**

**Again, I'm very, very sorry about this, and I hope all of you will continue to follow and read this story upon its revival. I believe the point that I left off on was a satisfactory one, so I hope you remain tided over until my return. **

**Once again, I deeply apologize for this. Any fans of RWBY out there, feel free to check out this new story. **

**Rest In Peace Monty Oum. You will be greatly missed.**


	8. Valentine's Day Special

**Author's Note- I don't want to get your hopes up too much, because I'm not quite done with my RWBY fic, and until I am, this story won't be updated anymore. However, I am nearing completion, and since yesterday was Valentine's Day and I had some free time, I wanted to give you guys a fluffy little chapter here. So yeah. Have fun reading this, and hopefully I can get back to this story pretty soon.**

**Chapter 8- Valentine's Day Special!**

Several weeks had passed since Crime Sociére's midnight exodus. Kinana wasn't exactly upset, per say, as she knew they were trying to do a good thing, but Erik's absence was slightly disheartening.

Valentine's Day was fast approaching, and as Mirajane's matchingmaking fervor reached new levels of intensity, Kinana couldn't help but feel disappointed that her special someone wasn't present. Then again, considering some of the romantic "accidents" Mira had orchestrated recently, maybe that was a good thing.

Kinana handed a pint over to Wakaba and sighed softly. As much as she was glad that Mira had thus far left her alone, the increasing romantic tension about the guild had her wishing Erik was still around.

"Thinking about a certain Dragon Slayer?" came Mira's sly voice from behind her, making her jump slightly.

"I- I don't… no."

"I don't need to be able to read minds to tell you _that's_ a lie. So I thought you'd be happy to hear that a little bird told me Crime Sociére is back in the area.

Kinana almost dropped what she was holding. "Really?" she squeaked, perhaps a bit to excitedly. "Who told you that?"

"I make it a point to never reveal my sources, but I've been told they should be here by Valentine's Day. What a coincidence."

Kinana had to admit, the idea excited her. Having Cobra around on that particular day was an exciting idea to say the least. However, that also meant she should probably clean up her apartment, and maybe get some new clothing… a whole list of things she had to do, that, while probably unnecessary, weighed pretty heavily on her mind. Kinana smiled slightly as she thought about the idea; turns out this would be a good Valentine's Day after all.

Cobra, on the other hand, was freaking out. Jellal had dropped the bombshell on them earlier that day—he had decided they should return to Fairy Tail for Valentine's Day. Meredy and Ultear were pretty indifferent to this, but the two guys in the group were pretty much flipping shit over what to do. Jellal knew he was basically expected to do something for Erza, and Cobra—well he wanted to seize the opportunity this holiday was giving him.

It was eventually decided- Ultear would help out Jellal and Meredy would go with Cobra so they could brainstorm what to do for their "totally not girlfriends," as Meredy so helpfully put it.

Jellal and Ultear retreated to a tent to figure out what to do, leaving Meredy and Cobra sneaking around the small town they had camped near in their cloaks, pondering what exactly to do.

"You gonna buy her something, or what?"

"Mavis, Meredy, I don't know! Do you ever shut up?"

"Nope. Never. So, what does your girlfriend like?"

"She's not my girlfriend, damnnit! And I don't know that either!"

"You seem to lack a lot of knowledge about the person who's supposed to be your significant other."

"She's not... oh whatever, you know what, I'm past caring what you think. I need ideas, not criticism."

"Well why didn't you just ask? For example, a card is always nice. That shop over there looks promising, and you can never go wrong with jewelry."

"See, that's the kind of talking I don't mind from you. Now come on, I'm gonna find the perfect gift."

Three hours of intensive searching later, Cobra was beginning to lose hope. Meredy, however, was still a gushing fountain of optimism, and continued to drag him from shop to shop. Cobra was about to admit defeat when Meredy yanked him into one final shop and he saw it. Perfection. He knew immediately that this was exactly what he was looking for, quickly paid for the item and slipped out before anyone started asking questions.

Cobra and Meredy returned to camp to find a rather satisfied looking Jellal—clearly he had also succeeded in his search for the perfect gift, and was holding a suspiciously large, sword shaped package. Interesting, Cobra thought, but an appropriate gift for the red headed warrior.

The group broke camp and headed for Magnolia—it was only a few hours walk, but they felt more comfortable traveling by night, so they would officially arrive in Magnolia the next day—Valentine's Day.

That day, everyone in the guild hall was excited. It was the day of love, after all, and people were determined to please their significant others. Juvia was stalking Gray with renewed energy, Bixlow had gone all out in giving his babies heart-shaped costumes to please Lisanna, and Laxushad slyly slipped Mirajane a box of chocolates on her break. This was the atmosphere the Crime Sociére walked into.

Jellal immediately sought out Erza in a back booth, more then a little excited about seeing the redhead after all this time. Cobra approached the bar, trying to act nonchalant, but the sound of his heart beating was threatening to drown out even the loudest ruckus of the guild.

"Well hello Erik. Glad you could make it." Kinana greeted him with a blush. Cobra nodded slightly, almost unable to speak. He pulled out a small package and managed to choke out a "Happy Valentine's Day" before completely losing his nerve.

Kinana blushed fiercely and accepted the package. She opened the package and gasped lightly. "Erik… it's… perfect!" She pulled out the piece of jewelry—a small bracelet designed to look like a small snake curling around the arm, with small purple amethysts set as its eyes.

"They… match your eyes." Cobra stuttured out, regaining some confidence after seeing her reaction. "And I thought the snake was… appropriate."

"It's beautiful, Erik. Thank you." She put on the bracelet before their conversation was interrupted by lound gasps from the assembled guild members. Cobra looked over and saw a very surprised looking Erza, still holding the katana Jellal had bought her, as he kissed her passionately. Cobra almost laughed upon hearing their thoughts, which alternated between "what the hell is going on" and "Thank Mavis, finally."

Cobra was suddenly struck by a boost of confidence and turned back to Kinana. "I guess that's my cue." he said lightly before turning a kissing Kinana lightly on the mouth.

To say the barmaid was surprised was an understatement. She practically jumped away, but judging from what she was thinking, she wasn't uncomfortable with it. Unfortunately, Natsu had caught sight of them, and judging by the murderous intent Cobra was hearing, he definitely _was_ uncomfortable.

"Damnnit Poison Breath, stay away from her!" he shouted, drawing everyone's attention to the two of them, and began running at them with fire in his eyes. Mira stepped in however, with Laxus on her arm.

"Laxus, honey, Natsu's been very annoying lately. Could you… take care of him?"

"With pleasure." Laxus growled with a smirk. He stepped into Natsu's path and grabbed the Dragon Slayer, hoisting him completely off the ground.

"Hey, Flame Brain." Laxus taunted. "Cool down!" With another prize winning smirk, Laxus bodily tossed Natsu clear across the guild hall and out the back door, where he crashed loudly into the pool.

Cobra grinned as Natsu dragged himself out of the water and charged Laxus, only to be immediately knocked flat with a single punch and promptly thrown back into the pool.

"Serves him right, hot headed bastard." he commented with a smirk.

"Y'know, I could say the same about you. All you Dragon Slayers share a lot of personality traits." Kinana replied with a grin.

Cobra fiercely denied that he shared _any_ similarities as Mira looked on, content with what had occurred. Lisanna walked over to her sister, still being trailed by a set of rather hyperactive, chirping tiki dolls.

"I take it you're rather content with what's happened here today." Lisanna commented, gesturing around the guild hall where Cobra and Kinana kept conversing, Elfman and Evergreen had finally managed to avoid an argument for more than five minutes, and Jellal and Erza were deepening their make out session into something that should have probably been relocated to a more isolated location.

"All in all, I'd say this was a rather successful Valentine's Day. Now go run along, have your fun with Bixlow. Don't forget to tell me all the naughty details." Lisanna blushed fiercely upon realizing what her sister was implying.

"Mira-nee! That's just gross!" Mira only laughed and surveyed the guild once more. It had been quite the successful year, indeed.

**Hehehe I had all these ideas and I just couldn't **_**not**_** write them down! Hope you enjoyed this fluff-fest. Couple notes—one; Screeching Harmony! You're back! I was wondering where you'd rear you're head once more! Thank you for checking up on my stuff! Second, and more importantly, I am nearly finished with my RWBY fic; only a few more chapters, which will hopefully take less than a week! And after that, back into this with full force! Though I'm not exactly sure where to go from here… I may need to introduce a new antagonist…. or maybe an old one… hmmm. I'll have to think on that. But this story is not yet complete—I still have Kinabra plot bunnies roaming free, and I won't rest until they're satisfied! Panhead (temporarily, but not for much longer) out.**


	9. Flash

**Author's Note: Oh boy oh boy, look who's back… **

**So anyway, I finally finished my RWBY fic and got enough time to update, so here we are, finally! And boy oh boy you are gonna hate me when you're done with this chapter, I've got plans and angst rolling around up in my head and God you guys are in for a ride here muhahaha. So I hope you don't despise me when you're done, and it's good to be back! BTW, this will contain mild spoilers for the Tartaros Arc. Nothing huge or major, but some characters and plot points. Just so you know.**

**Chapter 9: Flash**

Things were good.

A few days had passed since the Valentine's Day, and the romantic fervor had died down significantly, despite Mirajane's best efforts. Cobra was currently sitting at the bar in an easy conversation with a certain barmaid, and Jellal and Erza were still suspiciously absent, as they had been for the past few days.

Natsu had been slow to accept Cobra's presence and new relationship, but since Laxus's intervention, so to speak, he had grown to get used to it. Cobra still picked up the occasional poisonous (HA!) thought directed at him from the Fire Dragon Slayer, but the constant threats and attempted violence had all but ceased.

"You just gotta let 'em get used to it, y'know?" Gajeel had informed him when Cobra presented his concerns about being accepted. "I mean, c'mon, I destroyed the guild and chained the shrimp over there to a tree, and look at me now." Cobra had to admit he had a point; despite their rough history, the tall, dark mage and the short blunette were clearly smitten with each other, not that either of them would ever admit it.

This being said, Cobra was fairly comfortable now. The nervous sideways glances he had garnered before had all but stopped, as had the sense of unease he had constantly picked up from the guild members before. He had even started to get used to the constant roar of mental and audible voices and noise the guild produced, though he wasn't sure that was really a good thing.

He wished he'd never have to leave. A part of him knew that was impossible, some logical, rational part bugging him, saying "You know they'll find you here, you can't stay, you have to run!" but for just this moment, he ignored it. He didn't want to leave his new friends; Gajeel, and Laxus, and even Natsu to some extent, but most of all he didn't want to leave Kinana. He had even thought about offering her a place in Jellal's little group so he wouldn't have to leave her, but thought better of it; Kinana couldn't just up and leave like he could, and she wasn't even a mage to begin with.

Nevertheless, he still hoped. Glancing now at the barmaid in question, his heart leapt a little when she turned and gave him a small smile before hurrying off to help an increasingly drunk Cana. He almost wept when he saw Jellal re-enter the guild (finally) and knew instantly what he would say.

"Alright, Cobra, find the other two. I believe we've officially overstayed our welcome, and we really ought to get moving again. There's rumors of a dark guild causing trouble over in Naxos, and we should check it out."

Cobra sighed deeply and stood to find Meredy and Ultear. After retrieving the pair, as well as his things, he stalked over to the bar once more.

"Well, it looks like this is goodbye for now." Cobra ground out unhappily.

"Oh, cheer up you." Kinana replied with a grin. "I'm sure I'll see you soon enough. Now that Jellal and Erza's relationship has, uhh… advanced, we'll say, I'm pretty sure he'll have a hard time staying away."

"You've got a point there, but that still doesn't make me want to leave you here alone."

"Ooohh, is someone feeling protective? Don't worry about me, I've got the whole guild looking after me. I mean, even Gildartz is here today. There's nothing that could possibly happen here that he couldn't handle."

Cobra pouted a little, which Kinana had to admit, looked adorable on him. "I know that, but still…" he whined. Kinana cracked another brilliant smile.

"Just go with Jellal. Help some more people, do your thing. I'll be fine here. If the council comes calling, you won't be."

Cobra sighed in defeat and kissed Kinana lightly. "I'll come back soon, I promise."

"I know you will. Now go, before Jellal decides to stay longer to get some more Erza-time."

With that, Cobra joined his teammates and swept out the door, flashing Kinana one last wave goodbye before turning to trek up the main street with his team. They reached the edge of Magnolia's official borders, and with one last look at the guild behind them, set off into the unknown.

They had made it into the next town over when everything went wrong. They were walking through the market district, searching for any information of useful tools when a dusty, battered figure approached them, staggering and holding his arm as if it were injured.

"Jellal! Ultear! You- you have to help!"

"Who the hell… Jet? Is that you?" Jellal asked.

"Yes! Come quickly, it's terrible! You have to help!"

Cobra's heart started racing. The slim mage's thoughts were too scrambled to pick out anything specific, but whatever had happened, it was bad.

"Jet, calm down. What the hell happened?"

Jet took a deep breath, wincing in pain and holding his side. "Right- right after you left…we were attacked. Jackal, I think his name was, from Tartaros. We fought him before, we all thought he was dead. He came back though… oh Mavis…"

"Alright Jet, just calm down. Who's injured, is everyone alive? Come on, we can talk as we go back to the guild.

Jet let out a short bark of laughter before burying his head in his hands.

"Head back to the guild? Jellal, I don't think you get this guy's power. We can't head back to the guild; it's gone, everyone's gone." Jet looked up with hurt in his eyes and gulped back his tears. "That bastard didn't just attack us: he blew up the whole damn building."

**Muhahahahaha I'm so evil. Couldn't avoid the angst, I'm sorry. I hope y'all don't hate me. But remember, I can't drag out angst to save my life, so this all will probably be resolved fairly quickly. Maybe. Anyhoo, hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoy writing it. I hope you appreciate my return!**


	10. Bang

**Author's Note: Welp, I'm finally back. Sorry 'bout the cliffhanger. Not really. Anyway, I know it was kind of out of nowhere, but hey, I needed a new antagonist, and I wanted to angstify (is that a word? It is now) the story anyway, so why not do both at the same time? Point is, once I'm done with this sort of plot thingy, I'm afraid this story is kinda nearing completion. I mean c'mon, Cobra is pissed and heading after Jackal, so this can't last that long, right? Few more chapters maybe, but then it'll probably be done.**

**Chapter 10: Bang**

It was just as they had feared.

After sprinting back to Magnolia after hearing Jet's news, the Crime Socieré found the guild hall in the exact state he had described it in: completely decimated. The once tall and proud building had been reduced to a smoking crater; as they approached, dazed townspeople helped patch up guild members who had already made it out of the ruins.

On their way towards the smoldering remains, they passed Cana with her head being bandaged. A slightly singed Evergreen sat looking on as an unconscious Elfman was dragged from the wreckage. Up ahead, Makarov's Titan helped shift rubble to pull more people out, including a dazed looking Gray as well as all three Exceeds.

Overall, it looked like a warzone. Jellal was in a complete panic until he neared the former guild hall and found a certain redhead nearly unscathed, helping pull the unluckier ones from the remains.

"Erza! What the hell happened?" he called out, relief evident in his voice despite the dismal scene.

"That bastard Jackal came back. His magic blows things up; we thought Natsu took him down before but clearly he found somewhere to regenerate."

"How many people…"

"As far as I can tell, no one died, but we've only found a handful so far—I'll be honest Jellal, it's not looking good."

Cobra looked around; to his dismay he found that Kinana, and in fact, none of the bar maids were anywhere to be found.

"Where… where's Kinana?" he asked, his voice almost cracking. "Oh Mavis, is she alright?"

Erza turned towards the Dragon Slayer. "We pulled her, Mira, and Lisanna out a few minutes ago. They're in pretty bad shape… Porlyusica was working on them over there."

That was all he needed to hear. Cobra split from the group and ran in the direction Erza had indicated; it wasn't long before he found the old woman in a small tent with some cots for the victims in the worst shape.

Mira was conscious when he entered, which was better than could be said about the other two. Both Kinana and Lisanna looked to be in pretty good shape externally, but their lack of consciousness spoke volumes about how dire of straits they were actually in.

"What do you want, brat?" Porlyusica snapped as Cobra stepped through the doorway.

Cobra ignored her and staggered over to Kinana's bed, where she lay unconscious. "Is- is she gonna be okay?"

The old healer sighed before walked to bandage Mirajane's bruised stomach. "I think so. We got her out soon enough, and her injuries are relatively minimal… it'll take time, but she should be okay." The healer stood again and checked Lisanna's condition. "If you really wish to help, the lightning freak was going to go after the demon."

Cobra nodded dully. He took Kinana's limp hand, and after a moment, he stood and stepped out of the tent. If Laxus was going after the bastard that had hurt what he loved, he sure as hell planned to go with him.

He found the aforementioned Dragon Slayer standing outside the tent. His ever present jacket had been shredded, and his face spoke of both concern and incredible destructive anger. The masked man standing besides him bore much the same look, and his ever present tiki dolls were unusually silent.

"I'm coming with you." Cobra growled out, and Laxus immediately nodded in agreement; he knew better than to argue.

"We'll be leaving in a few hours. Do whatever you want until then; we'll meet back at the guild—or what's left of it—at 3. Be there or we'll leave without you."

Cobra nodded again and reentered the tent. He sat down besides Kinana's bed and took her hand once more. Porlyusica came through several times, checking on her patients, and Bixlow and Laxus often stepped in to check up on their significant others. Erza arrived and dropped off several other gravely injured; Natsu struggled against her before being tightly bound with bandages, and Wakaba was completely passed out (though whether that was from the bombing or the alcohol he had consumed, Cobra was unsure). After what seemed like hours, Kinana stirred from her slumber.

The bar maid grinned weakly when she saw the Dragon Slayer watching over her. "Hey." She muttered timidly.

"Hey. I was… really worried about, y'know. I don't know what I'd do if…"

"Don't think like that. I'm fine now, aren't I?"

"Well, yeah, but what if you weren't? I- I…" Cobra sighed. This was going to be harder than he had thought. "I really don't know what I'd do… Kinana, I think I- I'm…"

"Cat got your tongue?" Kinana asked with a weak smile.

"Shut up, you, I'm trying to make my speech here." Kinana pouted a little, but lay back down and let the slayer continue.

"Anyway, what I was trying to say… I really care about you, and- and I don't want anything to happen to you, and… I love you, ok? Maybe you don't feel that way, but Mavis, if anything else, just-"

"Erik?" Kinana cut the mage off before he started rambling. "Just shut up." She sat up and kissed the surprised and elated Cobra. She quickly broke away and laid back down: she was still injured, after all. Cobra squeezed her hand and stood to leave the tent.

"Don't worry Kinana. I'm gonna find this guy and kick his ass for you."

"My hero." Kinana replied, rolling her eyes and giggling slightly before wincing as Porlyusica swept over to bandage her various injuries.

Cobra jogged to the former guild hall and found a significant group waiting for him. Laxus and Bixlow stood at the forefront, with a pissed off looking Erza behind them. Gildartz looked less like a bomb had gone off next to him and more like he had just woken up, with messy bed head as his only injury. Gajeel and Pantherlily completed the posse.

Laxus stepped forward. "Let's go losers. We're goin' demon hunting."

**Hehehe just had to slip the Mean Girls reference in there, you guys understand. I hope y'all don't hate me too much… I did fix everything! If that means anything to you. So yeah, next chapter, we'll see some group ass kicking, then some fluff, and after that I'm probably gonna wrap this story up. Sorry, but I will return to this pairing some day! In the meantime, I'll be working on another Mystwalker story, and oh god it's gonna get angsty. Think hit(wo)man who falls in love with her target type stuff. So check that out. Til next time!**


	11. Revenge

**Author's Note: Whoa, two updates in two days? What sorcery is this?! This is it guys, big battle chapter! Probably nothing too serious, but Cobra wants vengeance and by god I'm gonna let him have it. Anyway, here you go.**

**Chapter 11: Revenge**

The group made their way out of town. Tracking the demon was fairly easy at this point; he had left a trail of smoldering, destroyed buildings in his wake. But as the left Magnolia behind, it became much harder.

Laxus looked out into the distance. "There's really only two places he could be. The mountains to the west, or lowland hills to the east. Gildartz, you take Erza and Gajeel to the east. I'll go with Pantherlily, Bixlow, and the poison bastard into the mountains."

Cobra nodded grimly, knowing better than to take offense. He bid farewell to other group and set off into the mountains. The group talked little, the events of the day weighing heavily on their minds. They searched various caves together as they made their way deeper into the rocky terrain, and soon Cobra started to detect a hint of brimstone in the air.

Laxus had noticed it as well. He stopped and sniffed the air. "He's close. Be vigilant." The group continued on, and the scent became stronger as they approached a large, ominous looking cave. Laxus and Bixlow stepped forward to check out the inside, signaling Cobra to watch the entrance with Pantherlily.

The instant the pair had stepped into the cave however, it became clear that Jackal had been waiting for them. A massive explosion blasted Laxus and Bixlow farther into the cave, at the same time collapsing the ceiling and closing them in. The demon then revealed himself, leaping down from the cliff immediately across from the cave.

The demon had changed just slightly in appearance from the last time he had appeared (**not that Cobra would know that, but for your sake…**). His tail had become slimmer and more prehensile, and while his hair still took the appearance of ears, they were much smaller and more catlike. His hair, arms, and chest had also been streaked with black, giving him a tiger-like appearance.

Smirking, the demon stepped towards the remaining duo. "You must be that group from Fairy Tail. Honestly, I expected more from you. I'm disappointed."

Pantherlily growled, but did not attack. "Listen up, that guys power is Bomb Curse—anything he touches will explode. Including you. So be careful."

Cobra simply grunted. "Hmm. Well, I can poison anything _I_ touch, so I guess we're even. Let's go then."

Jackal's smirk widened into an evil grin as he lunged forward. Pantherlily yanked his massive Musica sword from his back and immediately hit the demon with a flurry of powerful attacks. The demon was sent flying into the cliff.

"Idiot!" he snarled, yanking himself from the rubble. "You know what my Curse will do to your sword!" Pantherlily simply grinned in response.

"I know. I was counting on it." As Jackal's Curse runes spread over the sword's surface, the Exceed leapt forward, kicking the demon back into the cliff face. Seconds before his sword detonated, Lily planted into the ground directly in front of the demon and jumped backwards.

The sword exploded, burying Jackal in a spray of rock, and crushing him into the cliff. Pantherlily stood and brushed himself off. "That's about all I can do for you." He stated as he shifted back into his miniature form. "The rest is up to you."

Cobra nodded as the demon dragged himself away from the cliff face. His hair had been completely disheveled, and he was covered in a large variety of cuts and bruises.

"Filthy fairies!" he spat as he staggered towards the Dragon Slayer. "I'll kill you all!" Cobra dodged his first strike and stepped to the left.

"Poison Dragon's Twin Fang!" The dual streams of poison slammed into Jackal, sending him flying. The demon rolled into the impact and stood quickly, smirking and bringing his hands together quickly in front of him. "Exploding Spiral!"

Cobra leapt sideways, avoiding the brunt of the explosion, but the shock wave sent him flying. He struggled to stand up, and as he managed to get to his feet, Jackal flicked his hand at the Slayer, trapping him in a large transparent orb. With another flick, the orb exploded, sending Cobra flying backwards once again, knocking breath out of him and jarring his arm in a way that was definitely not natural.

The Dragon Slayer crawled behind a large rock as the demon searched for him by blowing up potential hiding places. He took a deep breath when he suddenly noticed a small rattler a few feet away, and was instantly reminded of his prison escape.

"Mavis, let's hope you're venomous." He muttered, grabbing the snake and plunging the fangs into his arm. He immediately felt the poison surging through his body, and his magic came rushing back to him.

He stood slowly and approached Jackal, who still had his back turned. Just before he was close enough to strike him with a poisoned fist, the demon spun around, smirking as his Landmine Curse activated beneath Cobra's feet.

"Hehehe. Can't attack me if you can't move, poison breath."

"Actually, I can." Cobra replied with a smirk of his own. "Sound Wall!" The massive sound wave knocked Jackal off his feet, and the Landmine curse was deactivated. Cobra took his chance, leaping forward. "Poison Dragon's-"

"**Lightning Dragon's Roar!**" The collapsed cave entrance exploded outwards, revealing a rather dusty and pissed off looking Laxus and Bixlow. The massive surge of lightning had sent the demon flying off into the cliff face once more.

"Baryon Formation!" Bixlow's babies spiraled and blasted Jackal even deeper into the crater that had formed from his numerous impacts with the cliff.

"We found another Hell's Core inside, must be a backup of some sorts for these demon bastards." Bixlow called out. "We may have kinda destroyed it, right babies?"

"Boom, smash, obliterated!"

Laxus turned to Cobra. "Nice job so far. Wanna finish it off?"

"Hell yeah I do." Cobra jogged to where Jackal stumbled in front of the cliff, barely conscious. He kicked the demon back and inhaled deeply.

"Poison Dragon's Roar!" The massive poison attack slammed into the demon, vaporizing him completely. Cobra walked back to the group, and the four turned without speaking and began to walk back home.

(**So, I thought about splitting this into two chapters, but I had some extra time, and I'm not sure I have enough stuff to make an actual chapter here, so I just decided to smash 'em together! This will be, therefore, unfortunately, the last chapter, so enjoy some fluff!**)

The group made their way back into Magnolia. Already, the less injured guild members had begun to put out fires and salvage what they could from the ruins of the guild hall. Cobra instinctively made his way back to the tent Porlyusica had set up.

He stepped through the door and made his way to Kinana's bed. She smiled gently as he approached.

"So I take it you got him?"

"Hell yeah I got 'im. You doing better?"

"Loads. Porlyusica loaded me up with some medicinal bandages, and fell much better. Still have a headache, but hey, a bomb went off next to me, I'd think that's normal."

Cobra took her hand and gently stroked her hair. "So Kinana… about what… what we talked about before…"

Kinana rolled her eyes. "Mavis, Erik, you've been back for like, less than 5 minutes. But to answer…" she smiled before sitting up and kissing him. "I love you too, you dolt."

"Hey, don't call me that, you make me sound like Natsu."

"You two _are_ very similar…"

"Why does everyone think that?!"

Cobra and Kinana started some friendly bickering and Mirajane and Lisanna (who had regained consciousness while the others were away) giggled at the couple's antics.

"Just a friendly reminder, little sis, I called that one from a mile away."

"Yeah, yeah you don't have to remind me. I'll get one eventually…"

"Have any ideas for who our next project should be?"

"Hmmm… Loke and Aries are adorable together…"

"Ooohh, that one'll be fun; both Celestial Spirits too…"

Cobra had heard this conversation over his banter with the bar maid, and rolled his eyes. He should have expected this from the Strauss sisters. But hey, at this moment, with a laughing Kinana next to him, surrounded by guild members he could tentatively begin to call friends, he was glad for their… interference.

Cobra leaned back in his chair, letting the ambient noise of Laxus and Bixlow's arrival wash over him. He may still have been a wanted criminal, but for the first time in a long time, things were looking up.

**Welp, that's it. The end. Fin. Good night. Go home. But seriously, I hope you enjoyed this little story. I will definitely return to this pairing at some date, but in the meantime, check out my other stories, as well as the Mystwalker feels fic I will soon be working on. Until next time, mis amigos!**


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